Once upon a time
by Elizabeth Gray
Summary: Fly through the pages of your favrite fairytales as Clary and Jace tackle poisoned apples, wicked stepmothers, monsters and above all, true love. They will change the way fairytales are thought to be...and to happen
1. Snow White

**Hey reader! Ok so I'm currently working on The Angel Complex so this will not be as updated as often but I will finish it. The point of this story…or a collection of stories is to place Jace and Clary at the site of each fairytale because….first of all who hasn't heard of fairytales, they consist of the most basic components of love stories and epic with a hero or heroine, a villain and a plot. They're short and to the point and some…don't have a happy ending. But I love them anyway and I hope you guys do too. So to start off, my mom used to tell me this fairytale all the time when I was a kid- snow white and the seven dwarfs. P.s the story is warped a bit so it is different than the actual version!**

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

She sat humming as she twirled her wrist, creating a new design of the white, unblemished canvas. She glanced out the window and was suddenly distracted by the view. Even if she had lived here since she was a child, the view of Idris during winter took her breath away.

Jocelyn Fray stared out of the Morgenstern Manor from which she could see the tiny points of witch lights making the city a sheet of stars on the ground. She sighed as she could feel the life still buzzing from the city. Idris never slept, it was a life within itself full of people and places that made it home.

She could hear the front door slam close and shivered. Her husband was home. What once was an occasion filled with joy and relief was now filled with fear. His return brought only a pain and a reminder to Jocelyn's heart as to the man whom she married was lost. He was cold and distant now, demanding of an heir soon to carry on his name.

She sighed as she felt the baby move inside of her and gently stroked her stomach to calm her. She prayed to the Angel that her daughter would have the strength to survive what lay in her future…her name…her destiny.

With her attention drawn away she was quite surprised when she pricked herself on the protruding metallic edge of a screw from the holder. She watched as the crimson drops of blood stained the crisp white sheet.

"May her hair be long and free, and as red as the blood that marks this canvas," she whispered, her eyes drifted to the cluster of herbs that grew at her windowsill, which provided health and life and inspiration to those who saw and used them. "May her eyes be as full of life as the plants on which we live and her skin be as unmarred as the canvas on which I paint."

Her prayers came true in the form of a baby girl that was born a few months later, with wild red hair and pure, green eyes. Her skin was pale without any blemishes. Her name was to be Clary after the herb but Valentine found that to be rather…improper and so he changed it to Clarissa.

They lived happily for a while, Valentine never really present for Clary's childhood but that didn't matter as long as her mother was there. Happiness doesn't last as long as it should have because when Clary was eleven, her mother died of illness. She just died, in bed without saying goodbye.

Clary was still dressed in white when her father announced his new bride. Aline was her name as her dark hair and dark eyes seemed to stare into Clary's mockingly, reminding her of the absence of her own mother.

Aline, as beautiful as she was, was tainted by her beauty. Her mind and heart was darkened with the vainness that was born from her looks. Her self obsession was fed by her dark secret, a magic mirror named Magnus.

Every night she would croon, "Looking-glass upon the wall, who's the fairest of them all?"

In response he would announce, "You, my Aline, are fairest of all." This cycle would continue, feeding her ego while Clary suffered in the shadows.

It was in the garden where Clary spent most of her time, amidst the beautiful budding flowers of vibrant colors which were splashed upon her canvas. It was there that she met her first friend. He rode in on a horse…dragged in was more appropriate. He was the son of a king, wounded in a riding accident.

"It was painful to be dragged along the horse for days," he had said, "but when I saw your manor I knew it was the Morgensterns, my father is friends with them." Clary had been watching quietly in the background.

He was handsome, and of course like any other eleven year old she developed quite a crush on him, skirting around the hospital room. Until he finally caught her.

"What's your name?" He asked, catching her as she walked past, for the thirteenth time, his door. She stopped and stared, he was actually talking to her. "Well? I see you here all the time, aren't you going to answer or are you just too awestruck by me?" He smirked.

She could feel the heat rising to her face. "My name is Clary," she snapped, "and yes in fact I am awestruck that you still have the capacity to be as arrogant as you are after being dragged on a horse for a day!" She knew it was the wrong thing to say as she slapped her hands over her mouth. "Oh by the Angel I'm-"

To her surprise…he chuckled! "It's nice to know that not everyone is as stuck up here. I'm Jace…Herondale."

"The king's son, I know." He rolled his eyes.

"My name is Jace, not the king's son. Come in." She hesitantly stood at the door. "I'm not a monster Clary, come in. I can tell you are good company already." She sat awkwardly at his side as he pulled out a small knife and an apple. "Would you like a piece?" He asked, offering one.

She cautiously took it. The sweet juice flooded in her mouth as she chewed. It was a nice apple, red and hard and shiny. Delicious too, she decided. It was that moment that changed her relationship with Jace forever.

He would tell her of the gossip he heard in bed and the news from other kingdoms as she would tell him of the manor, of the stories her mother told her when she was a child, and of her step mother.

"She's a strange woman," he said, "always chanting something."

"Chanting something?" Clary was curious, although Aline had never really spoken to her, more like ignored her and bossed her around at times so she wasn't surprised that there were things Clary didn't know about her.

"Chanting…at night. It's very strange. She always does it after supper too." Clary shrugged it off as merely an oddity and enjoyed her time with Jace. It was a sad day when he had to leave.

He bent down on his new horse. "I'll see you again Clary, I'll make sure of it." She was filled with sadness as her heart broke but her cheeks blossomed a bright red, as red as the apple they shared when they first spoke.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The conversation of her step mother's odd habits slipped her mind until her sixteenth birthday. Until then, Aline had been satisfied with the mirror's response of her fairness. But then after supper…

"Looking-glass upon the wall, who's the fairest of them all?"

Magnus smirked a bit as now he answered "Aline, you are full fair, it's true but Clarissa fairer is than you." Her howl of rage could only be described as primal.

From that moment on, hatred sprung in Aline and wrapped it coils around her heart. Envy and anger clouding her judgment as she hated Clay, hated her with such a passion that she sent for a huntsman to rid of her.

Luke was a decent, honest man. He never wanted to kill another human being but with his financial difficulties…the salary Aline was offering was too tempting to turn down.

"Lead her into the forest without any wandering eyes. You must kill her and bring back her heart as a token to me." She said, her long white fingers clawing around the box she set for her heart. Luke nodded and went on his way.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

It wasn't hard to led her in the woods as she was already there, looking for berries for her paints. He stalked her, like a hunter would stalk game. She whirled around and screamed, startled and frightened to see him with a shining blade in his hand ready to sink it into her heart.

"M-My stepmother sent you didn't she?" Luke could only nod. He wasn't expecting such an…innocent looking young girl. Why he had a daughter the same age as she was, how could he be expected to kill her? "Please spare me?" Tears were flowing down her cheeks.

Luke shook his head, "I've been given a job-"

"To kill an innocent child! I have done nothing! Her hatred is unwarranted and my murder will be as well." Her eyes grew dark, "May the angels forgive you for this act of sin." His blade was shaking now. This never happened to him, he was always so sure…so confident.

He took a breath as he lowered the blade and Clary's chest heaved with relief. "Go on, run now," Luke urged, "Your stepmother is persistent with her goals run fast and hide well."

"May the angels bless you." Clary whispered before she ran off. Luke looked around and sighed. There was no way-

The distinct snort of a wild boar sounded behind a bush. Luke smiled suddenly as he hopped to his feet.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"What a fantastic feast this is, isn't it darling?" Aline smiled affectionately at her husband as he nodded appreciatively. If only he knew what he was eating…with that thought Aline speared the rest of the heart and devoured it, smirking.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Clary had heard of the demons that lurked the night. Now she was seeing them. Her feet carried her through the prickly branches and thick tree trunks, right into the faces of demons. She couldn't scream, she was too tired for that as her feet grew cut and dirty.

She trudged on, thinking she would die…and she would if she stopped. Her heart jumped with relief at the sight of a building…the first sign of civilization in…days…

The Institute was carved in the arched doorway. It looked like a church. Clary cautiously entered, her feet touching the cold marble floor. The pews and altar was there. She stepped slowly through the aisles….taking everything in. She brushed the designs of Michael and Raziel when suddenly-

_Click, _her finger pressed Raziel's sword and there was a whirring noise. Panicked, Clary jumped back. The wall opened to an-elevator. Clary bit her lip, her step mother already wants to kill her so what more would more people do?

There was only one button and Clary waited anxiously in the elevator to bring her up. It was a home, a nice and cozy one at that. There was no one there, the rooms devoid of human presence. Clary quickly made her a sandwich in the fully stocked kitchen and went to rest on the beds. Unknown to her, the owners had already arrived while she was asleep.

"What the hell? Alec get over here! There's someone in my bed!" Isabelle snapped, waking Clary up. She gaped at the sight of the girl in front of her, frozen in shock and fear. Alec arrived and stared at Clary while Max, Maryse and Robert got to the room.

"Who are you?" Alec demanded. Clary took a breath. Was it safe to trust these people? They could be working for my stepmother….but judging by the looks on their faces, she decided to tell the truth. So she told them, who she was how her mother had died and Aline had taken over. She told them about Luke and how now Aline plotted to kill her.

They were all gaping at her by the time she was done. Maryse straightened up.

"It is our job to help those in need, you are welcome to stay in a room of the Institute."

The sealed the deal, Clary finally had a home. Soon she began training with Alec and Isabelle, reading manga with Max and just…belonging.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Looking-glass upon the wall, who's the fairest of them all?"

"Aline, though your beauty is rare, Clarissa still lives and in the Institute she prepares, for your wicked plans because she is more fair."

Aline gritted her teeth and refrained from smashing the glass. She was still alive? How could that be? Her mind turned hazy with rage. _If you want something done, you have to do it yourself. _She thought bitterly. There was only one place for beauty in this world, and it wasn't going to be her insolent step daughter.

She grabbed the tattered gray cloaked and rushed out the door.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"You will marry her Jonathan." Stephan's voice thundered through the hall, the servant scattered around in fear. Jace sighed.

"Her incessant talking will bore me to death before I even get the chance to walk down the aisle."

"Now Jace," his mother, always the gentle one, "let us talk about this before you do anything rash-"Jace sighed.

"May I be excused?" He didn't wait for an answer as he headed for his room, slamming the door. He knew he was acting childish but how could he ever even consider marrying Kaelie when he was still thinking about someone else…his eyes drifted to the apple sitting on his desk. He had requested a fresh one be put there since 5 years ago.

_Clary, _he mused as he took a bite, fresh juice spilling everywhere, _I have to visit her…soon._

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Doors remain locked at all times, don't open them for anyone only the angel knows what your stepmother is planning…" Maryse shook her head. She and Roberts had to attend a Clave meeting while Isabelle and Alec were going hunting. I, being not fully trained yet was forced to remain at home while Max got to go to a sleepover.

"Alright, I understand Maryse." I sighed as I opened the door for them, "have fun." I waved to them all and bolted the door, a sound of finality to the empty house. I turn around and began to read a book.

I was pretty hungry by the time nine rolled around but when I reached into the cupboards there was a knock on the door. I slowly made my way to the door, peeking through the peephole. There was an old woman there and she met my eyes and smiled, holding up a wicker basket. I bit my lip contemplating the choices.

"Apples for sale!" Her voice rang through the door. Apples…those reminded me of…I opened the door and a bright shiny apple as being shoved in my face. "Here, dearie, a bright, beautiful apple for a beautiful girl." I looked at the apple, it was an odd on, half was white and the other a scarlet red.

"How do I know that it's a….good apple?" I asked. She took out a blade and sliced it in half. She took the white half and chewed on it.

"It's sweet, I just picked them myself. Here, try them!" I hesitantly picked up the bright red one and took a bite.

The world swirled under me and swept me off my feet as I gasped. Through my disoriented vision I could see the old woman throw off her cloak and cackled. It was my stepmother. I opened my mouth to talk but my voice couldn't seem to work.

"Who's the fairest now?" She taunted and ran off as I escaped into the folds of blackness.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"What do you mean she's not here?" I demanded. Valentine shrugged.

"She ran off a few days ago."

"You didn't look for her?" My temper and panic rising.

"She is not my responsibility anymore." His bored tone infuriated me as I stormed out of the hall. I slammed the door in one of the random rooms and turned around. It was a bedroom, judging by the girly scent, a woman's bedroom. Not my Clary, no, she would never sleep in a room this…gaudy.

I looked in distaste at the multiple shades of purple that dominated the room. There was one single thing that wasn't purple thought, a silver, gilded mirror. I walked over and to m surprise the surface rippled and….a face appeared.

"Who are you?" It asked. A looking glass that could talk? What the-?

"I'm Jace Herondale-"

"Ahh yes, Jace. The son of the sun upon which the kingdom's future is done. Looking for your love Jace?"

"Do you know where she is?"

"It depends on what you ask. Do you want to know where she is…or do you want to know where her murderer is?" My breath caught in my throat. Murderer? No, no she couldn't be- I swallowed.

"Where is Clary?"

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

She looked peaceful, laying there. No amount of magic would cure her. Isabelle sniffed into Alec's collar.

"The burning will take place in a few minutes." Maryse's soft voice broke the silence. Robert's hand was shaking as he held the torch. "Any last words?"

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

He was running as fast as he could, he couldn't let her die, couldn't leave her body, o. His mind flashed with all the memories of Clary, her bright beautiful hair, her green eyes, her bad temper, her sassy attitude, she couldn't be dead!

The branches whipped at his body but he urged his horse on, he couldn't give up…for Clary.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Clary you were my-" Isabelle's voice broke off in a pained sigh as she pressed on to continue, "my best friend. You were the one willing to try my food…or help me improve it at least. You were more than just a shopping buddy or a food critique, you were my friend and for this, I am sorry that I wasn't there."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

He had to make it, he was so close….

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Clary, thank you for helping me read my manga, I don't think I would ever me introduced to so many- _CRASH!_ Everyone turned to see who barged in. Jace leaned over breathing heavily and all of their eyes widened.

"Jace what the hell-" Alec started.

"Clary, where is she?" Was all he said. His eyes met the altar and his feet seemed to pull him there. She looked…like she was sleeping, laying there in an all white gown. She looked like an angel. He leaned down.

"Oh Clary…" he breathed and slowly his lips met hers.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Darkness….there was darkness and then warmth…then there came light. I couldn't breath and I choked and sputtered until the thing dislodged from my throat. There was a gentle hand patting my back and I opened my eyes to find a pair of golden ones staring down at me.

"Jace…" I breathed, My hand gently touching his fae. He seemed unreal. "What happened?" He shook his head and rested his forehead against mine.

"You're with me, that's all that matters." With that, he touched my lips against his.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Wait so I was poisoned with an apple?" Clary said in disbelief. They all nodded. "Wow…I can't believe I went down that easy!" Jace chuckled.

"Only you would say that." He had his arm pulled tightly around her. He was finally happy, happy to be with the woman he loved and to be with his old friends. She looked up at him, and smirked.

"You know you love me."

"I do." He murmured with complete seriousness. There were groans of disgust as their lips met but they faded away to a world of their own.

"Hey whatever happened to Aline?" Jace smirked against Clary's lips and pulled away.

"I have an old friend taking care of that."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Aline rushed into her bedroom, eager to find out the results of her little…scheme. She froze when she walked in. Her spell book-open the mirror-on the floor.

"Ahh…the years in that cramped space. Don't you know how hard it is to achieve true feng shui when your home is a 6 by foot mirror?" A voice came from behind her. She whirled around, her voice stuck in her throat at a very tall man with bright, spiky hair.

He sighed and stretched. "God it feels good to get out of there." He looked at her. "Well thanks Aline for all of your…help I guess. I'll see you on the other side." With that he winked and gracefully jumped off the windowsill and onto the soft grass below.

Aline was still in shock. She clutched at her chest as she fell with a dull thud on the floor.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Jace what did you do?" Clary asked. He smirked even more.

"Alec…have you ever thought about having a boyfriend?"

**Review, do you think I should continue? I think I might do Cinderella next so stick around!**


	2. Cinderella Part 1

**Hey reader! Okay so for those of you who didn't get it in the last chapter, Jace set Magnus free with Aline's spell book and well I guess you can tell what happens when Jace asks Alec is he has ever thought about having a boyfriend…anyway here's Cinderella! P.S who can spot the Mean Girls reference? P.P.S Who can spot The Simpsons reference?**

Cinderella

_ She stood and watched as they ransacked her room, well it couldn't be called her room now, it was theirs. They replaced momma's beautiful paintings with their frilly lace curtains and posters of boy bands. Their color scheme was something to vomit at. _

_ She turned away as she couldn't watch. She didn't want to see the great, fat moving men replacing all of momma's things, her life with her step mother's new things. Maureen was foreign to Clary. Her overly sweet scent was repulsively pungent in every room of the house, covering momma's formerly comforting scent of acrylic paints. _

_ Her father? On a business trip yet again. Clary sighed as she returned to her new room, a quarter of the size of her old one. They had stolen her room, her things, her memories of her mother and most of all- her life. _

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"God damn it!" Clary swore. It was just her luck- on the D train during rush hour was one of the most hellish things to endure. 15 minutes until school starts and she still had to pick up Kaelie's dry cleaning. Her phone vibrated the moment the train hit the bridge.

"Clary where the hell are you?" Kaelie's shrill voice earned Clary some glares from fellow passengers.

"I'm on the bridge-"  
>"Just now? What the hell have you been doing for the past two hours? Ugh never mind, I need my uniform now, cheer tryouts start in half an hour!"<p>

"Jeez Kaelie, a human being can only move so fast-"

"I don't care, be here in half an hour with my cheer uniform or I'll get mom to keep you from that art show you've been whining about." The phone went dead. Clary groaned as she prepared for the most arduous hike down Broadway of her life.

Wednesday morning seemed to be the peak of dry cleaning pick up as Clary had to wait ten minutes. _God Kaelie could have just thrown it into the spin cycle, _Clary scowled as she juggled Kaelie's outfit, Aline's stack of new books as well as her school supplies. Her arms were aching as she crossed the street to Alicante High.

"I can't do this…" She gritted her teeth as she struggled to walk with the long, plastic gown. With a frustrated growl as tugged the gown off.

She was so close…almost th-_HONK! _Clary jumped back onto the curb narrowly missing the car the sped by her. With absolute horror, she felt the cool drops of dirty street water hit her skin…and Kaelie's outfit.

She felt dread settle in her stomach as she thought about what she would have to face, Kaelie….she's one of the people who gets whatever she wants and when she doesn't…there were consequences to pay…dire consequences.

Today was starting out just fantastic; she was already late to first class, Mr. Garroway was going to kill her! She ran up the steps of Alicante, desperate to meet Kaelie in time.

"Hey! It's Clary isn't it?" She whirled around and her eyes widened. Jace Herondale stood in front of her. Her breath caught in her throat. He was one of the hottest guys in school, total soccer jock and got whatever girl he wanted and currently…that was Aline. He was like…the Aaron Samuels of Alicante.

"Uhh…yea…yea I am." She said. She could feel the heat rush to her face at her heavy breathing, this morning was quite a workout.

"Uhh..wow ok because I just saw you almost getting hit by that car.." His eyes scanned over her as if to pick out any injuries, "I just wanted to see-to know that you were…ok." She couldn't believe it, Jace Herondale asking if she was ok? Could this morning get any more stressful?

"Well as far as I know my limbs are intact." She smiled weakly. Bu the Angel that was lame, he was just checking up on her, nothing else. He chuckled slightly.

"Uhh…yea I see that, well I was just wondering-"

"Clarissa Fray, where have you been?" Clary gulped as she heard Kaelie's voice, she turned to see her cutting through the clusters of students right to her. Goodbye cruel world...maybe she should've written her will or something…."What the hell-" She gasped as she took a look at her uniform. Clary flinched. Damn it….

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Wait so she actually threw the hanger at you?" Maia laughed. Clary just groaned as she put her head in her hands.

"Did she start jumping up and down like a little troll too?" Simon put in and they both burst out laughing. Of course they made fun of it. After Kaelie's freak out in front of basically the entire school, she was true to her word and phoned Maureen. Her punishment would be awaiting her once she got home.

"Come on guys, she told Maureen and she's probably going to revoke my right to step out of the house..." Clary muttered. Maia made snorted in disgust.

"Poor girl couldn't get any better defense than her mother? Please, that's just pathetic."

"It would be if she didn't have complete control of my father's assets, therefore controlling my life!" Simon rolled his eyes.

"Trust me, you'll be out of there soon by the amount of work you've been putting into working at Taki's. By the way, what was up with Jace Herondale this morning? The word in the hallways is that he was talking to you." Clary burst out laughing.

"You did not just say the word in the hallways, what are you? A gossiping old lady?" He shrugged.

"Just telling it like it is, your conversation is the talk of the school…that and Isabelle's big scene." Clary shrugged.

"I don't know…he was just asking if I was ok." Maia laughed.

"Clary Jace Herondale never _just asks, _he barges in and takes. I seriously wonder if he was a pirate in his past life." Clary glanced at the table of jocks and cheerleaders and her eyes zeroed in on Jace with his arm thrown around Kaelie. He smirked as he swiped Sebastian Verlak's fries out of his hand.

"Stealing, raping and pillaging? No one would be safe…" Maia muttered as she shoved the rest of her sandwich in her mouth. Clary was still looking at Jace. He seemed to notice as he looked up, met her and smiled at her.

"Yea…no one would be safe." She muttered.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"What? This is ridiculous! I have been waiting for this art show for months!" Clary protested. Her frustration and anger were at a boiling point.

"I'm sorry, but I said you could go if you could perform all of your duties in the correct manner." Maureen shrugged as she crossed the room to pick up her mascara wand from the floor.

"It was an accident, I didn't even see the car-"

"And yet you ruined my uniform with silk tassels which I can't get a replacement of since Isabelle freaking Lightwood took my place!" Kaelie shrieked. Oh, so that was what this was about. Isabelle Lightwood and Kaelie had always had somewhat of a rivalry…and deep hatred between them. Honestly, Clary couldn't help but feel a little bit of satisfaction develop inside of me.

Isabelle was in her trig class, they weren't the best of friends, admittedly but she was the person to ask for inverse angles. It was ironic however, that Kaelie hated her "boyfriend's" sister when Jace and Isabelle were quite close.

"What do you want me to do? Ok I can't-"

"I want you to suffer," she hissed. Clary knew that Kaelie had always hated her, though she never showed it like she did now.

"Now, now dear don't frown like that; you'll ruin your complexion." Maureen reprimanded breezily as she patted Kaelie's face. "Would you like to suggest her punishment?" Clary hated when they talked like that, like she was insignificant, like she wasn't there. She could almost see the gears turning in Kaelie's mind. She smiled wickedly.

"Mother," she said, her voice sickly sweet, "there is this dance on Friday…a big one-"

"Ahh yes…the-spring formal is it?" Maureen twisted her blonde hair in a tight bun and adjusted her makeup.

"Yes, it's huge. I was thinking…with the trouble that Clary has caused to my outfit…and to my reputation, her ability to attend should be…revoked and well as her ability to attend…anything outside of school and work."

"So she should be grounded." Maureen said as she glossed her lips.

"Yes, she should." Clary sucked in a breath through her teeth and tried to keep herself from yanking Kaelie's extensions from her scalp. She was trapped in this God awful place already and the walls were closing in even more.

"But that's not fa-"

"Grounded it is." Maureen declared, cutting her off. Clary gritted her teeth, she knew Maureen wasn't going to change her mind so the best thing was to make the best out of it.

"For how long?"

"Until I get sick of having you patter around th house and when that happens," She flashed a gleaming smile, "You'll be taking extra shifts at Taki's and give your salary to Kaelie to make up for the trouble." Clary's mouth nearly dropped open. That wasn't fair! All that hard earned money going to pay for disgusting perfume and makeup?

"But-" She began to protest.

"Ugh all of this drama! I have to go; I'm already late for my date! Fernando is waiting!" She waved her hand in a dismissive manner and waltzed out the door. Kaelie smirked at me and left as well and I was alone. The anger was making my hands shake . I had to break something. I grabbed the nearest thing and chucked it across the room.

I was shaking as I slowly bent down and picked up the shattered frame around my father's face.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Wha- Harry Potter convention, manga meetings, dungeons and dragons, movies at 8-"I shook my head. Simon sighed as he fell back into his chair. "Wow," he sighed, "they're really cutting you off."

"Not to mention making me give my money to Kaelie." I sighed.

"The Spring formal? That's just-ugh, that's just cruel!" Maia sighed. I turned to her in amazement; Maia really wasn't the….dance going type with her cut off jeans and t-shirts. "Stop looking at me like that! It's your senior year and you haven't been to a single dance! Heck, even I'm going."

"Yea thanks for reminding me." I muttered. The bell rang. "Ugh I have trig next, I'll see you guys." They murmured a goodbye and I started down the hallway.

The paper was starting to rip by the amount of pressure I was putting on with the eraser. I growled in frustration. I had always hated math.

"Need help?" A voice asked. I looked up and saw Isabelle looking at me with amusement.

"That would be much appreciated." I grinned apologetically at her.

"Ok s first the opposite and tangent…" She went over the lesson with me and Mr. Garroway collected our sheets.

"I need to talk to you after class." He muttered in my ear. Worry filled me, was there something wrong? Had I done something wrong? Isabelle turned to look at me.

"So the Spring Formals coming up." She said, nonchalantly. "Who are you going with?" That question threw me off track. She wanted to know?

"Uhh..well I'm not going. Kaelie….well she and my stepmom agreed that after yesterday morning…a break from social activities would be best."

"So you're grounded?"

"Yea, pretty much." She but her lip.

"I'm sorry about that…although I have to say….thanks." I looked at her in surprise. "I got the spot on the team…and got to see the look on Kaelie's face. Thank you Clary." She smiled at me.

"Uhh..you're welcome…I guess…" I didn't know what to say. She stacked the textbooks.

"Well it's a shame you're not going," She said, "Alec has been trying to get out of it but Magnus insists on dragging him." Alec Lightwood…he was the quiet one with much contrast to his boyfriend, Magnus Bane. "Anyway that's a disappointment…for Jace anyways." I looked up.

"What? Why?" She shrugged.

"He seems to be interested in getting to know you." Shock colored my features. Why would Jace Herondale, the guy who's dating my stepsister and is the golden boy of this school, want to know me?

"Wh-" I started.

"Oh look at that! Time to get to the next class, see you Clary!" She waved as she walked out the door. It seemed like I couldn't finish a sentence this week.

I sighed as she walked to her locker, my mind swirling with Isabelle's words. Jace wanted to know me? Why? I sighed as I walked out of school.

"Hey, Clary!" I turned around and saw Jace, it seemed he was always there.

"Oh, hey Jace." I smiled.

"Going home?" He gestured to my bag.

"Yea, Kaelie has my punishment cut out for me." I rolled my eyes.

"Look about that…I just wanted to see if you were ok."

"Again?" I chuckled. "Wow, you're just like a guardian angel aren't you?" His smile took my off guard.

"If you would like to think about it like that. Anyway I know Kaelie is sort of…intense-" I held up a hand.

"I live with her, don't worry about it." I smiled.

"Hey Jace!" I looked over to see Alec Lightwood, Jace's adopted brother calling to him while the rest of his "crew" stared at us curiously. Isabelle and Magnus were smirking at us. I looked at Jace.

"Well I'll see you later!" I waved at him and started off for home, ignoring his stare as I walked off.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Clary! More hairspray!" Aline called as she fluffed her long, dark hair. Clary sighed and rushed over. The smell was making her faint but she turned her head and allowed the giant puffs soak into her hair.

Clary was never one to care about dances or things like that but looking at their elegant gowns that hugged their bodies, Clary couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment. She was still a teenager missing out on one of the biggest events in high school.

"Clary be sure to take my laundry out promptly at ten, I don't want anything shrinking." Kaelie smiled.

"But…you're supposed to take it out at nine… by ten your clothes would be so shrunke-"Kaelie stopped her with a smirk.

"Have fun all by yourself." She smirked as she climbed into the limo. Aline waved as she got in too. Clary sighed as she closed the front door to the empty house, it was just her now.

_Ding dong! _I got up and looked through the peephole, surprised to see Maia and Simon standing there. The door burst open and to my astonishment, Magnus Bane came in followed my Alec Lightwood.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Sorry Clary," Simon shrugged, he was all dressed up in a tux it was weird to see him without one of his nerdy t-shirts, "I couldn't stop him. It was all Maia." Maia hit him. I noticed Magnus staring at me.

"This is going to be a lot more work than I thought." He sighed and ran a hand through his spiky, sparkly hair. Alec looked at me with pity as Magnus dragged me into a chair.

The next hour was spent primping and shoving. I had never had so much pressure on my scalp. I was directed towards my room more times than I could count with countless outfits. It was a wonder how many things Magnus could shove into one bag.

"There, you're ready." He announced. I looked in the mirror in astonishment. I had never been this…dressed up before. The green dress pooled at my feet, hugging all the curves of my body. There was a light touch of makeup on my face that accented all of my features. My red hair as bound up in a complicated twist.

"Where exactly am I going looking like this?" I think I already knew.

"Clary," Magnus put her hands on my shoulders and looked at me. "Maia told me what Kaelie did to you, what she and Aline have been doing to you your entire life. This is your chance, your chance to live before we graduate, before you become an adult this is your chance to not worry about work or school or those whores. So we are going to sneak out to the Spring Formal." Magnus handed me one more thing-a mask.

"What's this for?"

"The theme is a masquerade party."

The guy at the desk stared at me as his trembling hand gave me the ticket. I smiled despite the green and black feathery mask over my eyes. The gym was dimmed lit only with a few lanterns and there were large pieces of silver and blue fabric draped over the walls. The tables were set aside for a dance floor with a small elevated platform for a band. For the first time it looked…tasteful.

Magnus pulled Alec to the dance floor and Simon and Maia went for the punch. I stood awkwardly there in the maze of couples. What was I supposed to-

"Clary?" I turned around to see a masked woman in blue. "It's Isabelle, I can't believe you're here!"

"Yea…Magnus sort of…kidnapped me and brought me here." I laughed. She grinned.

"He tends to do that. What are you doing just standing here?"

"Oh, I don't-"

"Come with me." She grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the small group of students in the corner. My heart beat a little faster as I saw Kaelie in the group. She was sitting with Aline and had a furious look on her face. "Guys this is-" She stopped, "This is Cassandra…." They looked at Isabelle waiting for her to finish, "Uhh…Cassandra…Clare." She said finally. I gave them a small wave.

"Well hello Cassandra." Sebastian Verlak took my hand and gently kissed it. I had to refrain myself from bursting into laughter, he thought he was so smooth.

"Hi everybody!" I said. They all looked at me weirdly…no one got the joke.

"So Cassandra.." Kaelie asked, "Why is it that I haven't seen you around before. I mean, I must have unless you were hanging under a rock or-"

"Kaelie stop it, you're just upset because Jace broke up with you." Isabelle snorted. Kaelie's fist slammed down on the table. Wow….Jace had broken up with Kaelie? That was so unexpected; I had to stop the grin from spreading across my face.

"We're not broken up, we're just taking a break!"

"A break? Please, I know you're broken up. My brother has better taste than the likes of you.."

"So would you like a dance Cassandra?" Sebastian asked amongst the fighting.

"Umm…sure." I smiled. I took his hand and he led me on the dance floor. I wasn't that good at dancing, I'll admit and Sebastian very…forward groping of my body didn't help anymore.

"Do you mind if I save the lady of your molestation Verlak?" I turned around. Despite the mask, I knew instantly who he was.

"Herondale, I was just dancing with-"

"You really weren't," I cut in, "you were groping." I gently pushed myself out of his embrace. Jace smiled smugly.

"See even the lady thinks so. So back off." Sebastian rolled his eyes and went to hit on someone else. Jace turned to me.

"Would you like to dance?" He held out his hand. I grinned.

"I would love to." He held me in his arms as we moved in small steps.

"Thank you." I murmured. "For saving me from the most awkward situation I've ever been in." He laughed.

"Yes, Verlak does do wonders with the ladies." He lifted his arm and I twirled. We danced for who know how long talking about small things like favorite movies and books and his crazy dance moves. It was…comfortable and….nice. Jace Herondale was a real person, more than just tangible flesh and bone under my fingers but a person with real ideas and real thoughts.

"So what's your name?" He finally asked. I froze. Reality slapping me in the face. Here it goes, tomorrow he wouldn't remember me, tomorrow, he'll go back to being Jace Herondale- golden boy of Alicante. Tomorrow, I'll be me again a nobody with no freedom, no money and no family.

I opened my mouth.

**Alright cutting it off here. Part two will e coming soon because I don't like exceeding 10 pages and trust me Jace has a rather…interesting way of getting the girl but doesn't he always? ;) Part two probably won't be as long as part one but I want to develop their relationship to make it more…realistic. But on another note…did anyone get the Simpsons and Mean Girls reference? Tell me what you think, review please.**


	3. Cinderella Part 2

**Here's part 2!**

"Maybe some things are just meant to stay mysteries. I mean would the Mona Lisa still be as famous without her enigmatic smile?" I wanted to bash myself on the head for using such a cheesy line. He couldn't know. He couldn't know who I was because….I couldn't let him know. He wouldn't even look at someone like me the second time if I wasn't all dressed up.

He pursed his lips and then grinned. "That's true…going going for the mysterious beauty at the ball?"

I snorted. "I can't believe you just said that." I laughed. "That was just so…." I shook m head in disbelief. He chuckled.

"Well yea..." He looked to the back entrance. "Hey do you want to maybe…get out of here?"

"Oh uh…I don't really do that-"

"No, no! Ok that sounded better in my head. I meant do you want to go outside to…talk. Just talk…" I took a breath. Ok, he was asking me to go outside with him…alone…to talk….

"Sure." I said, trying to sound confidant. "Let's go."

The grass was overgrown and the bench was slightly damp but we didn't care. We sat down.

"So tell me about yourself." I said, honestly curious about the elusive Jace Herondale. "Tell me anything…just…talk." So he did. He recounted stories about how he fooled his old neighbor into mistaking a raccoon for one of her cats. He talked about the scar on his knee from flying off a merry-go-round on the playground. He told me about how he and Alec pranked Isabelle when they were kids. I smiled and listened. It was fascinating to just listen to him talk. There was usually such a giant gap between us and tonight…he was sitting next to me just talking.

"Cla-"Isabelle stopped herself as she barged outside. "Uhm…I mean Jace I think you better come out here, Kaelie is threatening to storm out." Jace sighed.

"Sorry, excuse me for a sec." I faked a smile.

"Yea sure." Jace went in. Isabelle grabbed my hand and started shoving me down a path.

"Quick follow this path outside the back exit, Simon and Maia will be there to drive you home. GO!" She gave me one big shove and I started running. The branches clung to my clothes as I raced out of there and jumped into Simon's car and drove off.

The run has destroyed all of Magnus's hard work and I felt bad as I stripped off the dress and ran under the comfort of the steaming hot water. I wrapped the towel around myself as I took inventory. One dress, the necklace, one shoe- wait…where was the other shoe?

My room soon looked like a tornado hit it as I ripped the covers off of my bed looking for the shoe. It was absent. Damn it! Magnus was going to kill me. I sunk into a worried sleep, as the frustrated screams of Kaelie drifted in from the other room.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Jace Herondale was in a daze, which was saying something since he was usually so cool and suave with the ladies. He turned the green, sequenced shoe over in his hand. It was the only thing left of the mystery girl. She was beautiful with long red hair and stood out in her green dress. She wasn't even wearing heels, the shoe he held in his hands was a flat.

"So what do you want to do about finding her?" Isabelle asked as she spread out on his bed. Normally he would push her off but he had a mission.

"I'm going to find her," he said firmly, "even if that means going through every girl in the school."

"What so you want to go through a list from A-Z of every girl in the school asking for their shoe size?" Alec laughed from the corner. Jace stopped.

"Actually…" he trailed off, "That's a good idea…" He turned to Isabelle. "Izzy…please…"

"Ohh no I am not asking every skank that wants a piece of you to enter my house –"

"This is for true love Isabelle…" Jace pleaded. "Fine if you do this I'll-" He stopped and sighed, "I won't tell mom and dad about you sneaking out to see that total dweeb-"

"Whose name is Simon and you've got a deal." They shook on it.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"So have you heard?" Simon grinned as he sat down. I looked up from my tater tots.

"Heard what?" I asked curiously.

"Jace Herondale is combing through every girl in the school looking for 'the one'" He snorted.

"That could be the girl he met at the ball last night." Maia nudged my side.

"Well who knows I mean he's starting with Abby Cunningham." Thus the cycle started, Abby Cunningham then Ada Darth then Adira Smith and so on.

People were either dreading their turn to praying for it. I just stood back and watched the mayhem commence. The it was Aline's turn.

She had been quiet all week and then e doorbell rang just before dinner. I hurried to answer it and was paralyzed with shock to see Jace standing there.

"Hey Clary is uhm..is Aline there?"

"You freaking Man whore!" I was violently shoved to the side by Kaelie. "You broke up with me so now you're dating every girl in school to find 'the one'? Bull shit! You're just like every other guys wanting and just taking and leaving I can't eve-"

"He gave me a chance to refuse Kaelie." Aline said quietly, "I didn't."

"You traitor why the hell not? You're my sist-"

"I never felt like it! You have everything! You take everything! I can't even believe…." I glanced at Jace during the brutal assault. He looked ready to bolt.

"You know you can come in. I was just going to start dinner. They're bound to stop arguing sometime." I waved him in.

The pot pasta sauce was already simmering as I opened it and dropped in a few dashes of oregano.

"So…do you make dinner by yourself?" Jace asked as he sat on the kitchen chair.

"Well…Kaelie and Aline won't help and Maureen's already out so it's all up to me-" I stopped. "And since you're here, it's up to yo too." I handed him a knife and a tomato. "Start slicing." He chuckled.

"You know I don't usually do free labor."

"Well it's nice to know that I'm one of your exceptions." We worked in silence for a while, me moving under the intense light and heat of the stove. Suddenly I could feel his gaze on me.

"Hey Clary…do you mind doing me a favor." I turned around and collected all of the tomatoes and dumped them into the pot.

"Yea sure, as payment for your work so no more free labor for you." He smiled briefly.

"I was wondering if you could try on a shoe for me…" He reached into his coat pocket and took out a small, green, sequence flat. My breath caught in my throat. It was the missing twin to my shoe.

"Jace-"I started but was interrupted by Kaelie storming in.

"Jonathan Christopher what are you doing? Hitting on the maid now? What ab-"

"Kaelie!" He snapped. She suddenly fell silent looking at him with shock. "For once in your life please just shut the hell up! I just need Clary to do one quick favor." He gestured to me. I sighed as my toes grazed the fabric. Maybe it was finally time, maybe it was time to be free…happy…I slipped my foot in, perfect fit.

Jace laughed breathlessly. "It's you." He exclaimed, "It's was you."

"Are you…happy about that?" I asked nervously. He looked at me.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." He grabbed me and leaned it. I met him halfway and I swear firecracker exploded when our lips met. Well…maybe it was just the pot going off and Kaelie screaming her head off, either way it was just….magical.

**Ok well that was the end of Cinderella. How was it? What did you think? Review, Sleeping Beauty is next! P.s keep reading for an extra scene for all you Simon and Isabelle fans out there!**

He was shrouded by darkness as he quietly snuck into her window. Isabelle giggled as he collapsed on the ground. He got up and brushed himself off.

"This could've been a lot easier you know." He murmured as he swept her up into a kiss.

"I'm not the easiest person to get to." Isabelle laughed quietly.

"I know, I swear a bug crawled in my ants while I was scaling the tree." They moved to the bed and Simon pressed himself down feeling Isabelle's full curves and her entire form, smelling her sweet vanilla scent and-

"Achem." The light flickered on and they flew away from each other.

"Damn it." Isabelle cursed. "I'm going to kill Jace!"


	4. Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping Beauty

It was pandemonium when Maryse Lightwood rushed outside. The swirling lights of the ambulances illuminated the hospital's back entrance in a sea of red and blue lights. She could distantly hear the paramedic talking, informing her about everything. All she got were _mother and daughter-crash-main street-drunk-cardiac arrest in ambulance-_

"I-it was supposed to be me!" Jocelyn struggled to get out of the stretcher. She could see her now, only her face. It was pale and full f bloody cuts. "It was me; I didn't even see-"Maryse sighed as she tried to ease her back down. She hated nights like these. They truly tested her faith.

"Ma'am please settle down." Jocelyn Fray kept on struggling. Maryse growled in frustration as she gripped her shoulders and forced her to look at her. "Ms. Fray, you want to help your daughter, we want to help your daughter but the more time I spend here with you the less time I'm spending helping to save your daughter's life so will you please settle down!" Maryse snapped.

Jocelyn nodded, stunned. Maryse nodded at an intern in the back and he started to roll her away to Dr. Herondale to deal with. Maryse rushed over to the other stretcher.

"How is she?" Maryse glanced at her husband Robert who was frantically pumping air into her system. She had never seen him this worried. She looked at the patient. She was young, with fiery red hair that might have been pretty to look at before but now it was a dull red and covered with glass and blood.

"She went out in the ambulance and hasn't responded to any of the stimuli." Robert gritted his teeth. He lifted an eyelid to reveal a green iris and a pupil staring blankly at them. He shone a bight light and waved it around. Nothing.

Maryse gripped her wrist. There was a pulse. "She's got a pulse she's not dead." They were in the ER now. Maryse prayed that Jocelyn Fray was elsewhere because this was about to get ugly.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Jace leaned back on his chair. Walk-10, butt-9, cleavage- Jace pursed his lip and sighed in disappointment cleavage-6.

"Nice right?" Sebastian commented as he plopped down next to Jace. Jace shrugged and continued looking on.

"Boobs are a disappointment." Kaelie Fae kept on glancing back at him and giggling.

"Are you kidding? She's one of the hottest girls in school. Jeez Jace, you're picky." No, not picky. Jace Herondale was tired, tired of the same old games, the same old tricks. It was appalling how repetitive things got when every girl wants a piece of you.

He shrugged. "I guess I won't be seeing any this summer."

"Your dad's making you help out at the hospital?"

"Yea something about 'appreciating the little things in life'" Sebastian snorted.

"The only thing I'm appreciating is the way Aline's looking tonight when I take her out."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

In all of his experience as a surgeon Dr. Stephan Herondale hated this part. His fingers turned sweaty.

"I'm sorry Ms. Fray; you're daughter is in a coma."

Jocelyn just placed her face in her hands and breathed. It was the only thing she could do. Just breathe.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"I'm sorry I have to what?" The nurse just gave him a piercing glare.

"The patients have to spend 24 hours in a white sterile room with crappy daytime television. They want company…need entertainment."

"What do I look like? A freaking Barnum and Bailey clown?"

"Alright I'm sure your father…" I rolled my eyes.

"Who am I starting with?"

"Just to the second floor and work your way down the hallway."

Jace sidestepped a rolling cart. He paused in front of a door and plastered a fake smile onto his face.

Valentine Morgenstern was not a very responsive man. For the next fifteen minutes while Jace was in the room, he stared blankly at the television, ignoring Jace's attempts at conversation. Soon Jace found himself just giving up and watching the daytime soap opera with him. Nora had just found out that Jev was making out with Marcie when-

Jace glanced at his vibrating phone. It was time to move onto the next room. He considered just staying and hiding out here but…he glanced at Mr. Morgenstern's blank expression. That wouldn't be such a good idea.

"Oh god I'm so sorry!" The guy stuttered as he dropped the tray. Jace rolled his eyes and bent over to help him pick everything up. He seemed like a nurse. The nametag had Alec Lightwood printed in small black letters.

"It's no big deal." Jace waved him off. Alec just looked t him, blushed and walked away. Jace sighed as he walked into the next room. While Mr. Morgenstern was devoid of color, Magnus Bane was eccentric and his hair was every color of the rainbow. He sat up and sighed.

"Dreamy isn't he?" Jace looked around, there was nobody else here so he couldn't be talking about him…maybe he was just getting pronouns mixed up…"Nurse Alec…Mmm I'd let him give me a sponge bath any day…"

Oh great, Jace just had to get stuck with a gay sonic the hedgehog who looked like the child catcher from chitty chitty bang bang.

"Right…so technically I'm supposed to entertain you…"

"Oh really? Sing and dance routine? You know after the last one I'll never looked at 'Good Morning Baltimore' the same way ever again…"

"The last one?" How long has this guy been here? Magnus smiled.

"Maybe someday I'll tell you but in the meantime Blondie….we need to talk about your wardrobe."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Jace shut the door behind him in relief. Finally, the end to Magnus's speech of pros and cons of wearing ripped jeans to skinny jeans. Jace rubbed his temples. He needed a break. He blindly pressed a button in the elevator not caring where he'd go…just away. The doors slid open with a ding.

Crap, he was lost. Jace blindly whipped around a few corners until he heard…

"So we'll have to operate prep the…." That was his dad! He was going to kill him if he found out Jace was wandering around the hospital. Jace quickly yanked open a door and threw himself in it, waiting for the footsteps to pass. There was a steady beeping as well as flowers covering every surface of the room.

Jace walked around, cards and balloons were everywhere. He wondered who must have had this many people care about them and then he looked on the bed. She was pale and looked so small in the gigantic bed. Her red hair was dulled to brown and her eyes were shut, sleeping. He picked up the file at the end of her bed.

Clarissa Fray, age 16, coma….There was a creak.

"Jace what are you doing here?" Jace dropped the file in surprise at his father's voice.

"Uhh-well I was just-"

"You know what I said about wandering around." Dr. Herondale picked up the file and flipped it shut. Jace felt a twinge of disappointment. For some reason he wanted to know more about this girl. "This is my patient Jace, you're lucky it wasn't a nurse or her mother. You could've been kicked out and you would have -"

"Damaged your reputation yea I know." Stephan's eyes softened.

"Lost out on the opportunity. How is it going?" Jace snorted.

"A non responsive recluse and a crazy gay sonic the hedgehog. It's fantastic and now I find Clarissa-"There was a break in the rhythmic beep. Stephan raced towards Clarissa, checking vitals.

"I-is there any change doctor?" A timid voice came from the doorway. Jace turned around to see an older copy of Clarissa standing at the door. There were deep bags under her eyes and she held an armful of flowers. It must be her mother.

"Uhm…Ms. Fray I would like to try something-"

"Anything! Please, anything if it will make her better!"

"I would like to…expose her to a new factor in her environment." He glanced at Jace…."Perhaps a new person…."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

_Just talk, _his father told him, _coma patients can sometimes hear what you're saying. Just talks, nothing heavy say something about your day, have a normal conversation…._

Jace sat in the hard, plastic chair. The beeping was getting on his nerves.

"So…my name's Jace." The silence in the room was thick and heavy. This felt so weird. "Uhm…let's see I go to Alicante High School…I'm a sophomore there. I absolutely hate math there I mean really when you are ever going to need a coordinate pair….?"

And so it began, everything just started spilling out of him Small things at first like favorite books and movies for the first few days but soon it got to family and how his mom walked out and to his friends….it felt nice. He got used to the silence and it was nice to just talk freely and have someone listen….even if they were unconscious.

He looked forward to seeing her. She did things sometimes like the offbeat of the heart monitor or a small flutter of the eyelids. Dr. Herondale just put it as something coma patients do but somehow Jace thought she was messing with them or letting them now that…she was still there. He didn't exactly know when he had become so attached or why, she hadn't said a word to him but somehow he promised himself to wait for her.

Her mother got used to having him there in the room too, always walking around, adjusting the flowers and cards and humming if she was in a good mood. Unfortunately there was no process and so it wasn't a big surprise when her mother decided to cut the cord.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Jace had just arrived to find a giant cluster of people in front of her door.

"What the hell is going on?" He demanded as he pushed his way inside. Jocelyn looked at him, crying.

"Oh God, I'm sorry Jace I know how attached you've gotten but-" She took a breath, "I just can't let her live like this. It's time to let her go."

"Wha-what? N-no, no you can't do that!" He protested. This wasn't right, he couldn't just let Clary go. He had told her everything, whether she knew it or not and he wasn't about to give up on her now. She was human, she was his secret keeper almost…almost like a friend.

"I'm sorry son but Ms. Fray has already made up her mind." Dr. Herondale said sadly. He reached over and it seemed like slow motion to Jace, unplugged the ventilator. The dead silence was even worse than the annoying beeping. It was the sound of death, the sound of defeat and to Jace, it was the sound of loss.

He had never felt more alone as in that moment, standing at the foot of her bed listening to Jocelyn's sobs. Then- then he heard something, something so small he almost mistaken it for a creak of the window or a breeze. It was- it was a whimper. He ran towards the bed and gently touched Clary's wrist. It was there, the most beautiful thing he had ever felt in his life, a pulse. A weak one albeit but it was there.

"Impossible…"His father stood there, "w-we took the ventilator off…." The nurses bustled around Clary hooking and unhooking things as Jace just stood there, amidst the chaos.

There was a slight moan and then-he saw green. He smiled green, he had always imagined blue or brown but she always seemed to surprise him. She looked up and blinked at him.

"A-are you….Jace?"

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

**Ok so the next one is reader's choice. Which fairytale do you want me to do next? Please review of PM me! **


	5. The Little Mermaid Part 1

The Little Mermaid

"You're too young." Those were the words I had been hearing my entire life, "you're too young to train, you're too young to fight, you're too young to hold a blade." I was apparently too young to be a shadowhunter, to be any sort of adult doing any type of independent activity that it without my mother's supervision. Except now, the words were, "you're too young" accompanied with, "you're grounded."

"What?" I protested, "That's not fair!"

"You deliberately went out of bound, out of the protection of the demon towers without my permission to that mission."

"It was just a few demons at a club mom! Isabelle and Alec were right there with me!"

"What if it wasn't? What if it was a greater demon? Clarissa, I know how set you are on your training but you just aren't ready for this, you're too-"

"Young, I get it. I'm always too young. By the angel, I'm growing up! I'm a shadowhunter and I can fight, I can help why won't you let me?" My mother pursed her lips.

"If you were a mature adult, you'd understand why I am grounding you. Go to your room Clarissa, now." I opened my mouth but thought better of it.

The door slammed with an echoing finality as I collapsed into bed. It wasn't fair. I was a shadowhunter; it was my birthright, my future, my destiny to fight so why wasn't I allowed to? I trained just as hard as Isabelle and Alec and still, she wouldn't let me go.

"Stupid, overprotective mother." I growled into my pillow. I was ready to get out of here, ready to break free. I was being suffocated and- I was jolted out of my thoughts by the sudden ringing of the phone.

"Hey Simon,"

"Clary, hey want to meet us at Pandemonium tonight?" I bit my lip.

"Isn't that in the mundane world?"

"Yep, in New York but it's only a quick portal away, I could always ask Alec to ask Magnus for a favor…" I glanced at the doorway. On the other side, my mother was contemplating my punishment which was probably to keep me here forever. If she found out I went into the mundane world…I smiled wickedly.

"How soon can you order that portal?"

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Clary stop looking so nervous, you'll be fine." Isabelle smiled easily at me as she breezed by. I forced a grin.

"I'm not nervous." That was a lie; I couldn't ignore that slimy, slippery feeling of guilt that wormed its way into my insides persistently reminding me of my mother at home. The club was a small box that seemed to fit about twice its proper capacity. The music was too loud for any proper conversation so everyone made dancing their primary language which unfortunately meant a lot of grinding on me. I shoved my way to the bar as I plopped myself on the stool. I sighed as I looked around. This wasn't as fun as I had imagined.

The unfamiliar music and lights were strange and the only thing offering comfort was my seraph blade bumping my side as I moved. There were sudden shouts as I immediately shifted into alert- shadowhunter mode. It took a while to realize that they were shouts of excitement, for a man as he entered the club.

I saw why everyone was so excited, he was rather attractive as he waltzed in with an air of confidence surrounding him. There were a few high five and one armed hugs as he made his way to the bar….right next to me.

I took a breath as I sipped my drink. _Don't attract attention, don't attract attention, don't attract-_ "Clary why aren't you dancing?" Isabelle whopped as she spun past me. _Well there goes my cover. _

"Dancing's not really my thing." I forced a smile as Isabelle spun off into the crowd.

"I can make it your thing." A voice whispered in my ear. I didn't have to look behind me to know who it was. He seemed like that type of guy. I closed my eyes briefly. Damn it.

"Well thanks but I really don't need you o-"I was interrupted as he gently grabbed my wrist. Grinning, he led me onto the dance floor.

"You're really awkward do you know that?" He stated. He moved gracefully around me as I stood still.

"Yea well normal people would do worse when a complete stranger ropes them into dancing with them." I scouted for the nearest exit. The back door, I needed to go. I couldn't believe I was talking to a mundane. I started for the back door and the cold air hit me as I pushed it open. The smell of foul garbage and the sound of sirens were still unfamiliar factors considering the of unpolluted air and safe silence of Idris.

There were footsteps following me as I turned the street. He was following me.

"Hey! Hey! Where are you going in such a hurry?" I turned to look at him.

"I-I need to go home." I turned back to walk off but he stopped me as again, he grabbed my wrist.

"Ok, I'll walk you home."

"No i- it's pretty far and I don't even know you."

"It's New York, we can probably get there by train and my name is Jace so there." I looked at him, into his golden eyes. He was a mundane; I shouldn't be talking to a mundane. It was…dangerous. I was a shadowhunter, a fighter; I couldn't deny the rush, the euphoric pleasure of adrenaline as I ran away from my mother's firm grip. Who knows when I'll have another opportunity like this one. I smiled at him.

"Actually, I don't have to go home after all. I'm just moved here and I don't know the city well…know any sights?" He grinned at me.

"May I have your name mysterious woman who can walk really fast?"

"My name's Clary…Clary Morgensterns."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"So…where are you taking me again?" I asked as he led me on a path illuminated by the golden glow of street lights…much like witch lights.

"If you're going to live in New York, you're going to need to go to Central Park. The night is a good time, not too many people and it's not as hot either."

"Exactly how big is this…Central Park?" I thought of the green, grassy hills of Idris compared to the flat ground of New York. Jace chuckled.

"What century are you from? You don't need to be all that proper around me you know." I could feel myself blushing. My mother had groomed my speech, each word; syllable must be exact and precise. Morgensterns do not use slang, slur or stutter. That was the slogan.

"I'm sorry, it's just I'm no used to the way New York…works." Or the mundane world for that matter. His hand was still in mine as he led me off the path to a slight incline. I could feel the squishing of grass under my feet as I walked. There was a small, secluded circle with large rocks off to one side and a tree in the middle. A small stream straddled it as a bridge stood in the distance.

"This is my spot." He said as he sat on the ground. OI could see why he liked it so much, the tall buildings reached atop the sky thrusting their being into the dark clouds. From this view, I couldn't understand why people disliked mundanes so much. Their cities, their buildings, their creations...were beautiful. I slid down next to Jace. "So Clary," He rolled my name on his tongue, "where are you from?"

"Uhmmm….Switzerland." Idris was technically in Switzerland. Jace laughed.

"Really? Do you eat a lot of cheese and chocolate there?" I rolled my eyes and punched him in the arm.

"Do Americans always consume burgers and fries and put ketchup on everything they eat?"

"Point taken, so tell me about Switzerland, how is it?" I smiled.

"Oh, it's beautiful. We have buildings as tall as yours especially the towers; they're reflective so the sunlight can paint them a blazing red every morning." I had painted them so many times; Alicante was truly gorgeous at sunrise.

"Really? I had never heard of that, what's the city called?" Crap, I had said too much, a mundane wouldn't know about the demon towers or Alicante.

"Uh..it's really hard to pronounce, you wouldn't be able to so I'll spare you the embarrassment." I forced a smile. "Tell me about New York, I am curious about it." I was saved. He began to tell me of the delicious pastries at Veselka's and the strange encounters on the subway. His impressions of them made me laugh. When he delivered me back to the club, to the gang he turned to speak.

"So when are you free?"

"Uhh…" I hadn't expected this to be more than a onetime thing, but….I couldn't help but say that I enjoyed it.

"Next week, Tuesday seven o clock, don't be late." Isabelle stepped in as she grasped me by the shoulder and turned me around. I looked back and gave Jace a helpless smile as I waved. I snuck back to the dark manor blissfully happy, and feeling free as a bird.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The next few weeks were met with exhilaration as I continued to meet Jace. He was everything that my suitors which mother and father set me up with, weren't. He was funny, charming, relaxing. I didn't fear anything when I was around him but when I returned home…

"Where are you going sis?" I turned around to see Jonathan looking at me. "I was hoping we could spar, I haven't seen you around the house lately." He's never seen me around the house ever, always attached to father's side like a puppy. Well I guess you can tell that we are not close.

"Out with Isabelle and Alec." He frowned.

"I don't like you spending so much time with those people. Father says that-"

"Father says a lot of things but that does not mean that I have to abide by all that he says." I sighed, "Go back to father Jonathan and tell him that I am fine. His attempt to check up on me is wasted; I will only be out for a few hours." I turned and closed the heavy, wooden door.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"So then he said…" I was busy laughing at Jace's new encounter with the jazz player on West Fourth. I was till chuckling as he stared at me.

"What?" my giggles faded under his intense gaze. I grabbed the side of the boat to keep myself steady. This time, we were on a small boat, sailing on a lake in Central Park. I didn't even bother to ask him how we were able to do this at night but rather, just enjoyed the ride.

"Nothing just….enjoying the view." I blushed. He leaned in closer and closer, our lips brushed slightly together and I gasped at the electricity present. He pulled my face closer as our lips met again, this time for an eternity as I grabbed onto him. I hadn't kissed a lot of people but I'm sure nothing felt more amazing than him.

_Splash! _A few droplets landed on my skin. My eyes opened and focused off to the side…where a small distinctive figure was lurking in the water. My gasp stuck in my throat as I pulled away.

"Clary what's wrong?" I couldn't bring myself to answer him. It was my worst nightmare come true. Of course I had to see this coming, my two world colliding at epic speed…but not now. Not here….I turned back to him.

"I need to go."

"Oh ok well that's fine we'll just take the boat back to shore but I really have to tell you something." I sighed quietly. I couldn't do this, it was too dangerous for him. Keeping my eye on the figure, I listened. "Ok well I know you're in a hurry and this was supposed to be romantic and all but I just wanted to tell you that I lo-"There was a giant crash as a wave knocked us over. I sputtered as I grabbed the boat. I turned to see Jace looking around in confusion. "What was-"

Vankor demon, I could see it now. What was it doing in the water?

"Jace I need you to go." Jace grabbed my face and turned it to look at him.

"What?"

"Swim to shore, go home Jace."

"And leave you here? W-what's wrong Clary? Tell me the truth…what are you looking at?" Shit, the demon was getting closer.

"Just trust me." I said firmly. I kissed him one more time, trying to absorb the feeling of him. Then I let go. "Please." I breathed. He looked at me.

"I do, Clary just-" His mouth opened and his eyes widened in surprise. My hand scoured his back until I found….one of the Vankor's poison darts. He collapsed on me, his weight made me stumble.

"Oh by the angel…" I cried. I dragged him towards ground, I had to get him help, had to have him live…had to-had to do something. I gently laid his body down. Runes don't do anything for demon poison. His face was cool as I touched it, afraid of the contact, afraid to break him. "I'm so sorry…" There was a roar behind me as the demon emerged.

I could feel the anger, frustration and worry boil over as I lunged at it. It swiped at me with one of its claw. I pulled out my seraph blade and swiped. It screamed as my blade revealed a large gap in it side from which demon blood poured out of. I didn't have time for this. I needed to get help. I jumped behind it and stabbed in the most vital places. Unfortunately he saw that and his claw struck out and hit me.

I landed on the ground with a thud as my vision blurred. I could feel the impending thumps of his steps. There was a flash of silver as the demon let out a high, reedy moan and slumped to the ground.

"Clarissa?" It was Jonathan. It could feel his arm shaking me as I blinked and the world came into focus

"Jace…by the bushes." I croaked.

"I know, the mundane, mother is seeing to his health…and memory."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

When I was a girl, I dreaded my father's office. Every horrible punishment for me was planted there whenever I did something wrong. Now I wasn't scared, I was just worried for Jace.

"What were you thinking? You could have exposed us all to that-that disgusting mundane-"

"That mundane has a name and it's Jace." I snapped. He looked taken aback. I was surprised. He knew that I knew of his plans, his hatred of downworlders and mundanes, but I had never spoken against it.

"You have been spending time with…Jace." He was watching me.

"You should know."

"He's poisoned your mind, made you believe that-"

"He hasn't, you have. You keep me under this heavy blanket of security that doesn't exist! Just let me experience things for myself for once!" His jaw locked as glared at me.

"I can see that nothing I can do can reverse the damage. So I suppose time shall. You are grounded Clarissa, to be supervised at all times. You are forbidden to see that boy ever again. His memory shall be modified. He won't even remember you."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

**Two parter again! The next one shall be coming your way soon and it'll start looking like the Little Mermaid soon enough. **

**Thanks to ****Bookninja15 ****for suggesting this idea and for reading. Thanks to all of you other readers too!**

**Sorry I haven't updated in so long, I went to Orlando for a couple of days. I went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter! It was awesome! Oh right, and Disney too. **

**Ok so Part two coming soon! **


	6. The Little Mermaid Part 2

The Little Mermaid Part 2

It seemed like an eternity as I lay in my bedroom. I was forbidden….forbidden to see Jace ever again. He was just supposed to be a mundane, just someone to have some fun with so why were my feelings so strong? It wasn't supposed to be this complicated. No one was supposed to get hurt.

_Especially not Jace _I thought as I turned over. There was a soft knock at the door as I muffled my invitation into my pillow.

"His memories have been wiped…he's going to go back to his mundane life." Jonathan's soft voice filled the room. I took a deep breath. Why was I so affected?

"Good…that's where he belongs." I was Clarissa Morgenstern, a member of one of the most prestigious shadowhunter families in the world and she does not care for some random mundane in a bar.

"Father wants to see you." Pinpricks of anger appeared as I tried to keep my voice even.

"Please tell him to see me tomorrow; I am very much exhausted by today's ordeal." I buried my head in my pillow.

"Alright…oh and Clarissa?" I turned my head slightly. "Be careful." With that he shut the door, leaving me to my own thoughts.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Pst! Hey!" I pushed myself up and blinked blearily, still not processing what was going on. I yanked my windows open to find Isabelle chucking pebbles at it. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh Romeo, you have finally come." I sighed.

"Come on Clary, get serious we're going to get your boy back." At the mention of Jace I stiffened, what did they mean?

"I can't leave, I'm grounded." A poor excuse but honestly, I didn't trust myself to go out again. Look what happened to Jace.

"That's never stopped you before! Come on Clary, you're a shadowhunter and shadowhunter perform acts of courage for the ones that they love!" I froze. Love? How ridiculous, I didn't love him. Perhaps care for him but…not love. "Come on Clary, be brave!"

I gritted my teeth and sighed. I needed to fix this, it was my responsibility and if there was any damage to Jace…it was my fault. I swung my leg over my balcony as I gripped a vine, trying to pull my attention away from the ground. The vines were slippery as I climbed down. I climbed onto Isabelle's horse.

"Where to my knight in shining…stilettos?"

"Ha-ha very funny. I know someone who can help."

"So…how exactly do you feel about Jace?" Isabelle asked as she maneuvered the horse into a slight turn.

"Responsibility," I answered simply, "That's why I'm going." She snorted.

"Really Clary? God, in all of my years of being friends with you I have never seen you look at anyone like that. Not even the most eligible bachelors in Idris."

"What are you saying?"

"Why would you risk your family's reputation for him, your own self for him? You've become more human than I have ever seen you Clary! Tell me right now who are you trying to please- your father or yourself?" A sense of shock hit me as I realized what she was saying. By the angel, I had developed feelings for Jace…strong ones. I was in love with him.

"Isabelle….drive faster."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Magnus Bane?" I hissed. "Isabelle you know how my father-"

"Your father," She said, "not you." With that she rang the doorbell. I had seen Magnus Bane before but when he opened the door his form was draped in dazzling colors that still stunned me.

"I must admit I am surprised to see a Morgenstern asking me for help." He drawled as he led us in.

"Magnus, this is a matter of true love." Isabelle stated firmly. I kept my mouth shut, hoping that Magnus was somewhat of a romantic.

"Oh yes, I've heard of the mundane caught with the Morgenstern daughter." He raised his eyebrows at me. "The power of Valentine's memory spell holds great power, I'm not sure that I can reverse it." There it was my breaking point. I took a deep breath in…then out. He would never remember me, how we met, all the things that he told me I suppose I should be happy about this since I did lie to him but…what mattered more- my shadowhunter status or him?

"Then make me like him." I said suddenly. "Make me human." They both stared at me.

"Clary…are you sure? I mean your family-"

"My family can't make any of my decisions. Magnus, please make me human."

"You have to understand the gravity of such a wish Clary. He won't remember you. You'll have to have him fall in love with you all over again. You may never return to Idris again." I closed my eyes, trying to remember the city of lights that I had grown up in. No, I couldn't stay there forever. I didn't belong there, I never belonged there. I belonged where ever my mind took me and that was with Jace.

"Let's do it."

"Wait you haven't heard the catch yet. You have two weeks for him to fall in love with you."

"Two weeks? That's not enough time!"

"Two weeks and then the magic will erode your human body and you will die." The prospect of death shouldn't scare me, I've face it many times before but with Jace….I opened my eyes and nodded.

"Ok this is going to be very painful." Magnus said. Isabelle's stele hovered over my arm. "This mark will erase all of you former runes, even the permanent ones. You won't be able to use or bear runes anymore or else you will become a forsaken." I nodded.

"I understand."

"Oh yes…one more thing. I do require payment for my services."

"Well I have money-"

"I don't mean money." He studied me. "I want your voice."

"M-my voice?"

"Yes…it's quite pretty if you listen to it. I'll add it to my collection." I didn't want to know what that collection was of.

"Ok," I croaked. "Take my voice." The rune marks seemed to glow as he traced them on my skin. My last rune was ironically taking all of the other ones away. The minute the stele lifted from my skin there was a great…burning sensation that spread through my body. It was like someone was scratching at my skin, trying to take it all off. I jerked upwards and screamed. But there was silence emitting from my mouth. My voice was gone. The pain got worse and worse until I thought that I had died and then…it slowly ebbed away. I shakily pulled myself up and examined my arms, lightly touching the bright pink skin where my runes use to be. I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out. I swallowed.

"Thank you." I mouthed as I hurried to get out of there.

"Oh and Clary?" I turned and he pressed a light purple blossom into my hand. I looked down and smiled.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Lake." I mouthed as I sprinted towards it. It was still pretty early in the morning and no one was really there yet. The lake's surface was smooth, calm silver as I walked around it trying to find Jace. I stumbled down the hill he took me to on our first date and froze. He was there….with a girl.

"Oh God, are you okay?" She was saying frantically as she tried to help him up. He staggered against her for balance.

"You-you look like an angel." He slurred as he almost toppled over.

"Okay give me your address."

"Angel, you can sleep at my house anytime." I could only stand there watching-frozen as I watched the scene. The girl must have found out where he lived because she pulled him up and they started walking. I slowly sank to the ground and put my hands over my face. What had I just done?

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

My time was running out. Seven days…seven days until my death…seven days of watching Jace fall more and more for Aline. I walked faster down the night shrouded street. I was getting sick, I could feel it. Magnus was right…the magic was eroding my body. The sudden high fevers and coughs made it almost impossible to venture outside some days and it was getting worse. I was staying in Simon's apartment; he still has one in the mundane world despite being a vampire. Apparently paying bills makes him feel normal.

There was a clanking sound down the street as I looked up. A large figure was coming towards me. This wasn't good; I was alone in the middle of an isolated street in Manhattan. Crap.

"What are you doing here in the middle of the night?" His putrid breath blew in my face and I choked. I opened my mouth but again, nothing came out.

"Not a screamer, I like that." He whispered. I kicked him in his…area. He howled and let go of me as I took sharp breaths for the pain that was vibrating through my muscles. Damn magic. He slammed me against the wall, his hands wrapped around my neck. I could feel the air flow being cut off as I scratched and tugged at his hands, my vision blurred at the edges and then- his hands were gone. I panted, trying to breathe normally again when I looked up.

Jace was currently on the mission of trying to kick the man to death. Without thinking I put a hand to his shoulder. He stopped and stared at me.

"Are you ok?" He asked. Hope swelled up in my throat. Maybe he did remember me maybe the spell had gone- "Can you tell me your name?" Disappointment crashed over me like a wave. I could only open my mouth and gesture helplessly at the throat. "Oh…can't talk?" I nodded. "Alright well let's get you to a hospital." I shook my head furiously. No, I couldn't go. They'd find a lot more than bruises on my neck if I went.

"Ok look-uhmm…" I smiled slightly at his attempt of remember my name. I reached a hand in my pocket and extracted the herb that Magnus gave me. It was sort of like a totem, a grounding something to know that this was real, to remind me of what I had to do.

"I-is that a clary sage blossom?" I looked at him in surprise. "Yea my mom used to be big at gardening." I nodded enthusiastically, pointing at the blossom and then at me. "What blossom?" I shook my head, "Sage?" No try again. "Clary?" A giant grin spread across my face as he said my name. Finally.

"Clary? You're name is Clary?" I nodded, smiling. "Hmm..ok Clary are you sure you're not hurt?" I nodded. "Do you have anywhere to stay?" I hesitated. This was my chance, my chance to get close to him, to finally make him fall in love with me. I shook my head. "Ok then, you're coming home with me."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

I woke up to sharp jarring pains in my body. Damn…this was going to be harder to pull off than I thought. I looked n the mirror and plastered on a smile, ignoring the aches in my body as I walked. Jace was in the kitchen flipping pancakes, he smiled when I came in.

"Hey sleepy head, make yourself useful and set the table." I set two plates and two forks on the table. As Jace cooked I looked around. I saw pictures of himself as a boy, of his mother who had died when he was about 15, of his father who had grown extraordinarily distant towards him in a short amount of time. I saw pictures of him holding his bear-blue and of him playing in a tub of spaghetti for his fifth birthday. Then, I saw a picture in him and the girl from the park. I frowned slightly.

"That's Aline, my girlfriend." His voice interrupted my thoughts as I spun around. He chuckled at my guilty expression. "She'll be joining us for breakfast by the way." There was a knock at the door. "That's her now." He swung the door open to reveal a small, petite brunette. She grinned at him and I had to look away as they kissed. She looked over at me.

"Oh, who's this?" There was no malice n her eyes, no hostility just pure curiosity.

"That's Clary…the girl I told you about." The curiosity folded into deep sympathy.

"Oh well you are welcome to stay for as long as you can put up with him." She laughed. I smiled and mouthed a thank you. Yup, this was defiantly going to be harder than I thought.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

I was raining as I sat on the spongy, wet soil under the tree of Jace's hidden spot. Some raindrops hit my cheek, mingling with my tears. I forced myself out of the apartment today despite Jace's and Aline's protests. I needed to get away from them- from their love. Here I was, trying to accept that fact that I am going to die. I was so stupid. They were so in love and I could see why Jace loved Aline. She was extraordinarily kind. I wanted to hate her so badly but instead…I just sighed in defeat.

"Clary!" A sharp voice caught my attention as I looked up and gasped. Isabelle was standing in front of me. Her face was pale and shaky. What shocked me most was her hair. Her long, beautiful black hair looked like it had been chopped off into an uneven mess. "Clary, listen to me because you only have so much time. You can become a shadowhunter again. All you have to do is stab Jace with this stele." She pressed the thin instrument into my hand. "Stab him with it and let the blood flow over your arms and legs. Then draw the permanent runes." I reached out and touched me hair. She chuckled sardonically. " Magnus needed payment for finding this." Her head snapped up. "Quick someone's coming. Remember what I told you." She leaned down and kissed my forehead. "I hope to see you soon." With that, she disappeared into the light mist of the rain.

"Hey look, you found my secret place." Jace plopped down next to me. _No I didn't find it, you showed me it, don't you remember? _I thought desperately but I only smiled at him. There was a long silence before he started talking. "You know I really love Aline right?" I nodded, ignoring the sharp pains in my chest. "But you've been living with me this week and…it has been quite a week." He chuckled slightly. "Anyway what I'm trying to say is that I've grown very…attached to you Clary…for some reason and I just wanted to say that….I love you, as a friend." Those were the three words that I wanted- needed to hear but they weren't enough. I could only smile at him with tears lining the edges of my eyes.

"Me too." I mouth. He smiled as he wrapped his arms around me as we watched the rain fall together.

He was asleep, I could feel it. This was my chance. I slipped out o his grasp and held the stele over his heart. My hands shook. _Shadowhunter perform acts of courage for the ones that they love. _Isabelle's voice echoed in my head. I wasn't a shadowhunter, I was human. Humans are selfish, humans would do anything to survive, human- Jace shifted and turned in his sleep, his angelic face morphed into a smile. Humans love. I slowly lowered my stele. I'm not going to be able to do this. I got up and started walking.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Central Park was silent as I walked through the maze of trails and pathways. My feet seemed to take me to places my mind didn't comprehend. And then, I was there. The small clearing lined with Magnolia trees. I lied down on the soft grass. And I poised the stele in the correct position. I took a breath as I plunged it deep into my body. The pain was a shock at first and then the blood started flowing. I could feel it stain the grass beneath me, forming into a pool. Then I began to float, away from my body, away from Central Park, away from everything. Where ever I was going I hoped that Isabelle's hair would grow again, that Alec would have the courage to tell people about his secret, that Max would never stop reading Manga. I hoped that Jonathan would realize his potential for his own life, just like my mom should realize her talent. Most of all, I hope that Jace knew how much I cared about him, how much I loved him even though he didn't remember me. Because that's what love is, sacrifice to save the one that you care about at any cost. I wasn't a shadowhunter anymore, I wasn't a human. I just…was.

**In Hans Christian Anderson's telling of the original Little Mermaid, she turns into sea foam at the end and joins the daughters of the air which I wanted to do a spinoff of that for Clary. Anyway moral of the story- the prince doesn't always end up with the princess. Aline isn't the bad guy, and neither is Magnus because sometimes there was no villain in the story. Sometimes the story just happens. Anyway the next one is going to be a surprise. I hope you like this one and review please! **


	7. Rapunzel

Rapunzel

Jocelyn Fray stared out the window, sighing with weariness. She had seen better days. Her face and body had grown haggard with the lack of food but it wasn't her fault. Her taste buds seemed to reject everything put in her mouth except...

She looked wistfully out the window again at the bright plumes of purple that blew gently in the wind. It was ironic how much she had and yet how much she wanted a bundle of clary sage plants perhaps just to taste. It was torture to be up here, seeing them but not being able to get them. Her fingers itched to pick the bright petals off of one, just a few, perhaps to boil into tea. She glanced down at her protruding stomach...but that would be impossible.

Lucian was getting worried about his wife. She wasn't eating or drinking anything except for the times when he had to force her for the sake of their unborn child. She did nothing but stare out the window all day. He gripped the tray, sighing mournfully at the loss of vitality in his wife. He set the tray down, sending a clatter in the silent room. She was sitting in her chair again, gazing absently out the window with her hands stroking her stomach.

"Jocelyn-"he started.

"Look at them," she murmured, "look at how enchanting they are beautiful, free..." Her voice went soft and nearly inaudible. "I just wish...I could have just one." She picked up the cup of tea and stared at the tea leaves, as if trying to imagine them out of sight. She closed her eyes and forced the hot liquid down her throat, pretending that it was the lovely petals of the clary sage herb instead of the dark tea leaves.

Luke stared at his wife in despair. There was absolutely nothing he could do to deter her obsession so there was only one thing to do.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Luke grunted as he sniffed the perimeter of the manor, not detecting any lingering scents or activity. _The things I do for family..._he thought as he shifted back. His hand gripped the wall tightly as he heaved himself up once...twice...with the third time he quickly swung his leg over. With the quick switch of weight, he was pulled off the wall and sent crashing into a nearby bush. For a few seconds he refused to breathe...afraid he had been caught.

He shifted back into a wolf, running quickly through the rows of succulent fruit and plump vegetables from the growing season. His eyes quickly spotted the clary sage, fenced in with a metal wire which his teeth made short work off. His hands went quickly as he yanked out a few of them, not caring about the disruption of the soil.

"Filthy downworlder, you dare steal from my prized garden?" Luke froze, his hands gripping the bundle even tighter as he refused to turn around. He knew that voice, the voice that rang true and cold with authority, the voice that commanded and entranced. He slowly turned to face Valentine Morgenstern with his cold his fixed upon the bundle in his hands. Valentine straightened, recognizing the person who had broken into the garden. "Lucian...I had expected you to be dead." Luke bit back the bitter comments bubbling forth in his mouth. His life as well as his family's was on the line here and he would not ruin that with his anger.

"Please Valentine; I would not do this unless it was absolutely essential. These are needed for an emergency." Valentine raised his eyebrows.

"Might I hear the circumstances in which you feel the need to steal from me?"

"It is my wife, she is ill with desire for these. She won't eat or sleep and it is endangering her health as well as the health of our child." Valentine looked at him thoughtfully. There would be nothing stopping him from beheading this filthy mutt right here in this instant however...

"Your wife is Jocelyn Fray is it not?" Lucian nodded. Fray was one of the most respectable shadow hunter names...their child could be of use...

"For the reason that you used to be my most faithful servant as well as the fact that your wife comes from a pure family, I will spare your life this time as well as give you unlimited access to my garden. However I require payment." Luke's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"What is it you want?"

"When your child is but one month old, I will come for her and I shall raise her. You will never see her again." Luke's heart broke at these words, he couldn't allow him to do that, to keep him from seeing his little girl ever again but if he didn't do that...His mind flashed to the bone haggard Jocelyn staring absently out the windows. He shivered.

"Very well, I accept your deal."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Luke watched as Jocelyn devoured her dinner with a surprising ferocity. Even this sight wasn't enough of alleviate the deep pit that formed in his stomach.

"This is delicious Luke, however did you do it?" Jocelyn asked happily as she sipped the steaming tonic.

"Jocelyn...I have something to tell you..."

_Crash! _Porcelain shattered on the floor as the tonic crept its way into the crevices, the cup escaping from Jocelyn's shaking fingers.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Clary threw open her only window, letting the natural light illuminates the dark room. The morning breeze was crisp as it blew across her face. It brought with it the scents of the newly baked bread and fragrant waxes being sold at the town but a few miles from her place in the woods. It was a shame for, she would never visit it. Clary turned away from the window, being careful to avoid the role coils of red hair which neatly wrapped itself around various pieces of furniture.

It was always like this, her life was a heavy mundane silence which hung heavy in her heart nearly every day. She longed for the freedom which she would never get to taste, the forbidden fruit. She was payment for the forbidden herb which her parents had sold her for. She smiled wryly at the very tops of the trees peeking out from the window. Wanting the forbidden was something that ran in the family.

She sighed as she rested herself on her chair, in front of the window, brushing her long red hair. She had no one, no friends, no pets; she had no connections of any kind except for the one with her supposed "father", who visited her in her tower every day. After 16 years, Clary still wasn't sure what to make of him. He remained stoic all the time, eyes empty and only lighting up in the heat of fighting. He had trained her well but never allowed her to keep any weapons. Their relationship was purely teacher and student and sometimes not even that. Clary couldn't help but long for something more fulfilling, softer, kinder.

"Clarissa, Clarissa let down your hair!" Clary sighed as she heard her father bellow. She gathered up her hair and allowed it to tumble down the side of the tower. The minor pressure on her scalp indicated the arrival of her father as he climbed into the room. He set down a basket, her supply of food for the day and threw her, her stele. Clary's fingers tingled with excitement as they touched the smooth crystal. Finally, she has it back.

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Alec Lightwood was a dead man when he got home. At least that's what Jace decided as he wandered around lost on his horse. He had never been to this part of the woods; the thickets were so tightly clustered together that he needed to cut at them with his seraph blade.

He should have known better. He should have expected nothing more than sweet revenge from Alec especially after revealing Alec's underwear with the clown prints to Magnus. He had decided to lure him out here and leave him here. Jace sighed as he steered his horse around another bend. It was getting dark soon and he should head back.

Except...Jace squinted his eyes. What was that? The tops of the trees...seemed to ripple in the dying sunlight. Jace hurried his horse towards that sop of the woods, demons, downworlders, shadowhunters, whatever; he wanted to check it out.

The clearing, the trees had been glamoured. He stared in amazement at the tower in its place. It was tall, white with winding black runes that ran up its slim body. They led to a small window at the very top from which now a man was climbing down. Jace edged his horse back into the shadows, keeping quiet. There was suddenly a flash of red as red...hair? Yes, red hair seemed to be cascading down the tower. Jace watched as the man climbed down it.

Jace bit back a gasp as he recognized the man. It was Valentine Morgenstern. His parents had told him about him. He had tried to rebel against the Clave ages ago and failed. He was apparently conducting some questionable experiments. Jace stared as the last of the red disappeared from sight and into the tower. He might have just found Valentine Morgenstern's dirty little secret.

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"Clarissa, Clarissa, let down your hair!" Clarissa? Was that her name? Jace watched as the red ladder came spiraling down the tower. He smirked. He had found the secret code.

Jace crept out from the shadows. He had just left but perhaps he could still summon her. He cupped his hands to his mouth.

"Clarissa, Clarissa, let down your hair!" Again the red hair came, falling to his feet. Jace took hold of the silky strands and began to pull himself up.

Clary was confused as to why father needed to see her again. Hadn't she already perfected the technique? Her eyes widened at the head of golden hair that appeared in her window. The intruder jumped in, inspecting the place with a sort of awe apparent on his face and then settled his gaze on her. _Wham! _Clary's body seemed to react on its own as she grabbed the frying pan and slammed it into his face. His eyes seemed to empty as his body rocked back and forth before collapsing.

Jace woke up with a considerable throbbing in his head. He reached up to run his hands through his hair, taking in his unfamiliar surroundings.

"Why are you here?" He looked up at the voice and stopped. Who would have guessed that Valentine's secret weapon was..a girl..and a beautiful one at that. He smirked.

"You're Valentine's...daughter?" Her eyes narrowed.

"You know my father?" Jace shrugged.

"As the old hermit on the street? Sure, but I didn't know he passed on his spawn."

"What do you want?" She held the frying pan threateningly at him. Jace chuckled before snatching it out of her hands and pressing her into the wall. Clary's breath quickened as she felt his lean body mold against hers.

"Just your name?" He whispered.

"My name..." she breathed. Her mind turned blank. God, what was her name? Cady? Caitlyn? Cla-Clary? "My name is Clary." Jace let her go as he straightened himself. Clary? Where had he heard that name before?

"Well Clary, my name is Jace. It's a pleasure." Clary nodded, still wary of his presence no matter how intoxicating it might be. "So Clary, would you like to tell me why you are in this tower?"

"Why don't you answer the same question?" Clary snapped. Jace shrugged.

"Long story short, I embarrassed my brother and he got me lost in the woods where I found you." Clary stopped.

"No one else knows about me?" Jace shook his head.

"Until now I didn't even know he had a daughter." Clary sighed.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised." She smiled at Jace's confused expression. "I was a bit of a...shock to him."

"Well then can you tell me why you're living in this stuffy little hole?" Clary's eyes narrowed.

"It's not all bad, I have all the essentials here, just wait un til it gets to night." Jace slid a chair out.

"Perhaps I will." The sky darkened, signaling the end of another day. Clary pulled Jace into the small opening of the window, revealing the deep, maroon sky.

"Look!" She exclaimed, pointed at the small dots of light that had begun to form.

"Yea, those are stars you can see them anywhere." Clary shook her head.

"I heard that in Idris, the witchlights are too bright to see any stars." So as the sun descended, throwing the world into a pitch black night, Jace had to admit they were pretty impressive. He could see why Clary loved looking at them, their free, unsorted positions in the sky was so vast, so massive that there was no place in the enormous expanse of sky that could go without the bright lights. From here, Jace could almost touch them; feel their heat in his fingers.

"Aren't they wonderful?" He heard her sigh. He looked over and had to grin as they awed expression on her face. Yup, he was definitely coming back.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Visits from Jace became a regular occurrence in Clary's life. Sometimes she would stop and reflect at how much that one man swept into her life and changed everything. She got a strange feeling in her stomach, a small flutter every time he was around and her cheeks seemed to be a permanent red every time he was around. She had never felt like this before. Perhaps it was like those books she had read; perhaps it was something called...love?

"Wait so seriously, you've never been to Idris?" Clary shook her head, feeling her cheeks warm again. Jace sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Well then, I guess I'll have to take you one day." Clary's eyes widened. What was he suggesting?

"Wait really?" She asked. Jace looked over, surprised by the intense look in her eyes.

"Well yes..I mean you don't intend to stay here forever right?" Clary looked down.

"I don't think I have a choice in that Jace." Jace snorted.

"Clary, it's your life you get a choice in everything. I mean, don't you want to leave? Don't you want to experience everything you haven't? There's an entire world out there, waiting for you. You can still see that stars millions of miles away." Clary bit her lip. She had resigned herself to the fact that she was going to be here for the rest of her life, never letting herself become tempted by the prospect of the freedom she never had.

"I don't know...this is my home..."

"From the way you speak of him, it seems like you really don't have an attachment to Valentine so what's holding you back?" Clary glanced out the window; she had never truly realized how vast the scenery was.

"What's out there." She sighed. She felt something warm slip into her hand and was surprised when she saw that it was Jace's hand. He looked at her, liquid gold boiling in his eyes.

"You can't let fear run your life, you're a shadowhunter, you're better than that. Besides," he smirked, "I'll be right there with you." Clary bit her lip. This was now or never. She sighed and took a leap of faith.

"Okay, ok, I'll go with you." Jace grinned as he swept Clary in his arm. Clary's breath escaped her as she realized how close they were. Clary stared at Jace, still intoxicated by his smell, his very presence and then they leaned with their lips touching. Clary felt a shock run through her body as they finally met. She had never felt anything, experience anything like this before. It felt...natural, unburdened, the easiest thing she had never done. She could feel Jace's hands roaming all over hands back. She broke away gasping and laughing breathlessly as she felt Jace pressing kisses down her throat. She shivered as he held her tighter. Yes, Clary knew she had made the right choice.

Jace was ready to leave and clary, as sad as she was, was comforted by the fact that he would be back to run away...together.

"Take my stele." He murmured, pressing his lips into hers. "Just in case anything happened." Clary nodded, slipping the thin instrument into her sleeve, with that he left out the window.

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"Clarissa, Clarissa, let down your hair!" Clary's heart seized. Father? How could she have forgotten him? With trembling hands she allowed her hair to fall down the tower, wincing now at the sluggish speed it took him to climb up compared to the lithe grace of Jace.

Valentine Morgenstern may not have been close to his daughter, but he observed enough to know that something was different. She was distracted today, gripping the length of her sleeve every few minutes. He dropped a seraph blade in front of her.

"Pick it up Clarissa." She hesitated before holding her arm out. _Clink! _Something slid out f her sleeve and hit the ground. They both froze, standing there looking at it. Valentine became enrage as he saw the stele lying on the floor. This was not his! He had not given on to her! He snatched it and glanced at the engraved initials, JCL. There was only on shadowhunter family with an L and one son's name that started with a J.

"Where did you get this Clarissa?" he growled. Clary stepped back, shrinking from her father's wrath. "Did _he _come? How often? Did he convince you to disobey your father?" Clary glanced out the window, mentally calculating her chance for it. "Is he your prince in shining armor?" he sneered. Clary got ready to run. "Well? Answer me!" Clary sprinted for the window but was yanked back by a burning sensation in her scalp. She saw Valentine grabbing her hair in one hand with a pair of shears in the other.

"You are no daughter of mine!" _Snip! _Clary's eyes watered in horror as her hair separated from her head, leaving only a choppy cut at her shoulders. Valentine packed her up that night and brought her back to the manor, instructing his son Jonathan to guard her. Clary had never been so frightened. Jonathan's eyes were black and the way he leered at her made her skin crawl.

"By the angel Jace," she whispered, "Please be safe."

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Jace rode his horse, pressing her on and on with an excitement he had never felt before. His dream had come true. He was leaving with Clary, beautiful, wild, mysterious Clary. He reached the tower in record time.

"Clarissa, Clarissa, let down your hair!" The red came tumbling down just like any other time. With a grin, Jace grabbed on and started to climb.

He jumped into the room, surprised to find it empty and dark. "Clary?" He called.

"So you're the one who wants to take my daughter away from me." He turned around to face Valentine Morgenstern. He felt sudden sting in his cheek as his head snapped to the side. He staggered back as Valentine continued to hit him. He could feel himself hanging out the window. "Goodbye Jonathan Lightwoods and good riddance." There was pressure on his chest and suddenly he could feel himself falling...falling...falling in blackness.

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Alec was already suspicious when Jace didn't show for dinner but when he found his horse stumbling towards him without Jace on his back, he knew something was wrong. "Quick show me where he is." Alec ordered as the horse tore into the forest.

Alec got off the horse and rushed towards Jace, who lay face down in a prickled bush. He dragged him out, inspecting the cuts on his face but worse...his eyes.

"Jace? Jace? Can you see?" He could see Jace's eyelids fluttering but Jace shook his head.

"M-Morgenstern Manor...take me there." Alec stared at him in shock.

"W-what? No, I'm taking you to Magnus, we need to fix you!" Jace grabbed Alec's shirt and pulled him towards him. Alec could smell the metallic scent of blood all over his face.

"Morgenstern Manor." He growled. "He took Clary." Alec shook his head. He didn't know who Clary was but if she was that important...

"Alright fine, I'll get a message out to Isabelle to get Magnus to meet us there ok?" Jace nodded.

"Whatever just take me to Morgenstern Manor."

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"He's dead." Clary looked up, her eyes still swollen from crying. "I killed him." Ice struck Clary's heart. She couldn't imagine Jace...lying dead at the foot of the tower...no...no...

"You're lying!" Clary shrieked as she flew towards him. "You're lying!" Jonathan grabbed her fists in time, laughing. She growled, surprising herself with the primal noise coming from her own throat. "He's not dead!" Valentine chuckled.

"Ohh...but he is do you know why my dear Clary?" He leaned in. Slowly, Clary could feel Jonathan's grip tightening. She could see his stele coming out of his belt in her peripheral vision. "Because I killed him." They both burst out laughing and Clary saw red. Her hand shot for Jonathan's stele and she could feel her fingers wrap around it as he pulled away in shock. Jonathan stared at her, before charging at her in anger.

Clary jumped onto the desk, avoiding his swipes. He grabbed her leg and she went tumbling down on top of him. Quickly he overpowered her as she struggled. "Calm down little sis." He hissed in her ear. She grunted as she threw her knee up as hard as she could. She could hear a grunt of pain as Jonathan's grip lightened. She took advantage of the distraction, swiping the stele across his throat. She winced as she felt the warm liquid splash upon her face. His dead weight made it hard to breathe as she heaved him off of her. She wanted to vomit as she found that her hands were covered in a sticky, black substance. By God...he was a demon... She could hear Valentine chuckling. She turned around, stele in hand ready for another fight.

"Congratulations Clarissa, you have become what I have trained you for." Clary stared at him.

"What are you talking about?" She hissed. Valentine laughed.

"You didn't honestly think I took you in through my kindness of my heart did you? No, when I saw that you were Jocelyn Fray's daughter i saw an opportunity...to groom the most perfect killing machine." He sighed at Jonathan. "Your brother was too cold, too aggressive with no control you however...took some molding but you've done it." His eyes sparkled with glee. "You finally took a life." Clary felt sick to her core. He was right, she had killed someone. What had she become? Suddenly she heard the doors burst open.

"Clary?" Her heart skipped a beat.

"Jace?" She called.

"What? Impossible, I killed him!" Clary's eyes widened as she saw Jace turn the corner but...he was covered in blood! There was another boy running behind him, he had black hair and blue eyes. His eyes widened as he took in Valentine.

"Jace! To your left!" He called. Jace flung his seraph blade to the left while Valentine dodged it cleanly. Alec went and swiped at his legs which Valentine pared with his sword. Clary's heart beat faster as he realized why the boy was shouting instructions. Jace's swings were wild and his movements were sluggish...he couldn't see! Valentine blocked Jace's attacks easily, forcing him down on his knees. Alec went for his stomach but Valentine yanked his sword out of his hands and knocked him against the wall. He turned back to Jace, lying there defenseless. He raised his sword.

Clary's fingers tightened around the stele. She couldn't let this happen, if Jace died...there would be no coming back from it. She sprinted towards Valentine, her body moving faster than her mind could comprehend as she grabbed Alec's fallen sword and stabbed it into Valentine's back, feeling the spray of blood hit her in the face. He fell to the ground, eyes wide with shock, still gurgling blood as he saw that it was his daughter who killed him before slipping into death.

Clary ran towards Jace, cradling his head in her hands. "Jace? Oh gods Please, plese just-just give me a sign you're still alive! Say something, anything?" Clary begged hysterically. She could feel tears well up in her eyes. They overflowed and spilled into Jace's. Jace could feel a strange tingling in his eyes, it was a warm, safe feeling that flowed throughout his body and broke the darkness. His vision was blurry but soon cleared. He smiled as he saw Clary's face hovering over his.

"You still want to see that stars with me?" He croaked. Clary laughed and she bent down and kissed him.

For Clary, life was a methodical circle, always alone but never independent. Temptation for her, for life was too much to think about but now, life is unpredictable, life is independent, life is freedom and best of all...Clary was going to have someone to spend it with.


End file.
